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Lorde's 6 Reimagined 'Melodrama' Songs, Ranked

Lorde reimagined 6 Melodramasongs—“Hard Feelings/Loveless,” "Homemade Dynamite," “The Louvre,” “Sober,” “Supercut,” and “Writer in the Dark”—in a candle-lit Electric Lady Studios, which just so happens to be the same place she recorded the recently released and highly well-received album.

Lucky for us, she shared all 6 stripped-down songs, but according to Lorde, in peeling apart these songs, she wasn’t so much reimagining them as she was taking them back to their acoustic, live-instrumental roots.

The percussion and guitar blend together perfectly, but the song really picks up with the horns and choir kicking in toward the end. Probably the only reason this takes the #6 spot is because songs #1-5 just seem to have that certain je ne sais quoi.

5. Supercut

There’s something about the simplicity of a piano, and that, mixed with a soft, steady drum beat and a choir makes this sound like gospel perfection. And can we talk about Lorde’s singing around 2:58? Okay, just about everything from 2:58-on is great.

4. Homemade Dynamite

The duality between the organic sound of the choir and the artificial, ‘90s hip-hop-sounding beats in the background creates a really cool sound. Plus, she just looks like she’s having a great time, and that’s what it’s all about, right?

3. Sober

The upbeat and danceable album version of this song is a party jam for sure, but the marching band re-do thanks to the brass and percussion sections gives this a wild twist that works in all the right ways.

2. Hard Feelings / Loveless

Lorde said Melodrama centers on young female emotions, so knowing that, how cool is this all-female group singing acapella-style in a circle? Also, that boom box-played mixtape of “Loveless.” Serious cool points earned for that one.

1. Writer in the Dark

This is a gorgeous song to begin with, but the instrumentals—especially the violin beginning around 2:25 and the ensuing string solo—take this song to the next level, bringing it to our #1 spot. (Bonus points for bringing Jack Antonoff, the Melodrama producer and co-writer, in for this one.)